


The Two Werewolves of Scooby Doo

by Eternal_Phantom



Category: Scooby Doo - All Media Types, Scooby Doo - Fandom
Genre: Also how does Aloha Scooby Doo have it's own tag and 13 Ghosts doesn't?, Gen, Reluctant werewolf is cannon for this, Takes place during To All The Ghouls I've Loved Before, divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:00:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23705008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eternal_Phantom/pseuds/Eternal_Phantom
Summary: Bad enough their vacation in Hawaii ended up in the Himalayas. Bad enough their plane is both out of gas and missing, and the only lead they have is a mystic they were led to by an underage con artist. But a secret Shaggy's been keeping is in danger of exposure, especially when a curse place on the town by thirteen angry spirits hits Daphne in the face
Comments: 11
Kudos: 41





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based off an idea by Cirilee

“I see your plane inside the temple. But you must not enter, because that is where the evil spirits dwell.The same evil spirits who put a curse on this town. For at night, when the moon rises, all the townsfolk turn into _werewolves_.”

“W-werewolves?” Even as his voice reflexively spoke in fear, Shaggy felt himself relax. Werewolves weren’t too terrible.

“And to think, I wasn’t hoping this would be the one full moon you wouldn’t be hiding from werewolves.” Daphne elbowed him playfully in the ribs.

“Oh, is that tonight?” Shaggy asked weakly. Traveling between time zones and over the International Date line threw off his sense of time enough he hadn’t realized it. Crud.

How to handle this? If it weren’t for the curse on the town, he’d suggest they get rooms and stay the night. But if this Vincent guy was right, and everyone was going to turn into werewolves, well camouflage as it might be, Daphne was going to come out the other end with questions and he’d just as soon avoid that.

But heading to the plane meant going to the temple with the *gulp* evil spirits. And there were less places to hide on the plane. Like, it wasn’t impossible, but neither situation was good.

Caught in his turmoil, Shaggy barely noticed as the mayor sat them down and offered them a mug with something that smelled so foul it snapped Shaggy right out of his stupor. “Eyurgh, like, what is this?”

Daphne smiled as she took a sip. “Shaggy Rogers, did we actually find something edible that I like and you don’t?”

“Like, apparently.” Shaggy slid his mug her way, wanting it as far away from him as possible.  
  
“We should take a picture to commemorate the occasion” Daphne joked. “What is this anyway?”  
  
“Our town specialty.” The mayor answered. “With just a hint of boiled Wolfsbane.”

“Wolfsbane?” Flimflam said in surprise.  
  
“Isn’t that the stuff that turns people into werewolves.” Scrappy asked.

Before anyone could answer, the stage lit up. In the center was a coffin with a small bat emblem in the middle. The performer stepped out “To all the ghouls I’ve loved before!”

But Shaggy wasn’t listening to him. He was looking at the little details, like the slicked back black hair, the suit with cape. The slight greenish tinge to his skin. The small fangs.

_Vampire_

“Nope.” Shaggy stood up and grabbed Daphne’s hand and tucked Flim Flam under his arm. He would take evil spirits, he would take Daphne’s questions. But he was NOT staying in the same place as a vampire. Scooby, on the same wavelength, picked up Scrappy so he wouldn’t have any leverage to fight back. Scrappy and Daphne both protested as the ran for the door.

The vampire-looking man tried to shut the door on them, but Shaggy yanked it open with almost superhuman strength.

”Shaggy I think this is a bit of an over reaction.” Daphne protested.

Shaggy ignored her. “Like, one way trip out of town, man.”

The stagecoach driver gave a wicked grin. “Sorry, no more trips, today. Best get back to the tavern for some drinks.”

But Shaggy was going anywhere but back to the tavern. “Like we’ll walk.” He managed to get about a block or two before Daphne squeezed her hand out of his grasp.

“Shaggy, what’s wrong with you? There’s no such thing as werewolves.”  
  
“Werewolves nothing, did you see that vampire on stage?” Shaggy felt his heart pounding. He wasn’t sure if it was fear, the full moon rising, or just the effort of dragging Daphne and carrying Flim Flam, but his adrenaline level was definitely going up.

“Shaggy, that was a performer. He was probably doing a bit.” Daphne argued back. “This isn’t even your normal fear, you’re going completely overboard. Shaggy, what’s wrong?”

He opened his mouth, but no words came out. How could he explain? Especially in the time allotted him.

Time that hand run out. The sun dipped below the surface and Shaggy felt a now familiar feeling run through him. “Daph.” He kept his voice steady, but looked at the ground. “I know what’s about to happen is going to look really weird. But it’s going to be okay, and I would never hurt any of you. Ever.”

Shaggy braced himself for a response, but he wasn’t expecting it in the form of a growl. He raised his eyes and saw Daphne twitching in the moonlight. “Daph?”

For the first time Shaggy was completely unaware of his own transformation as he saw Daphne shift into her own. His heart dropped, this was something he never wanted for any of his friends. “Daph, listen to me. It’s going to be okay. I know this is scary, but you’ll get through it.”

But Daphne didn’t respond to his words, just snarling and growling until the transformation completed. Then she lunged at Flim Flam.

“ _Daphne! What is wrong with you?”_ Shaggy grabbed her a struggled to hold her back.

“Th-They’re both werewolves!” Flim Flam exclaimed, scurrying back.

“I thought you fixed that?” Scrappy said, crossing his arms.

“Like, it didn’t take.” Shaggy grunted, still struggling. “Seriously Daph?”

But Daphne seemed beyond words are reason, more like a wild animal than a person. Maybe…?

Shaggy adjusted his grip so he had one hand around her torso and used his free hand to scratch behind her ears. She immediately relaxed, leaning into the scratching. Shaggy breathed a sigh of relief, but his ears perked up as he heard the townsfolk coming. But again the sounds were growling and snarling, as if they were all feral.

“Hide,” he hissed to Flimflam and the Doos as he straightened up. Daphne let out a small whine as the scratching stopped, but Shaggy hoped she could keep from going hostile at least until the crowd had past.

Sure enough a large pack of werewolves turned the bend. Shaggy did his best to imitate their snarling and growling, while pointing in the opposite direction of his friends. Thankfully they took the bait, and ran off. Shaggy sighed. “Okay guys, coast is clear.”

Scooby came out first and tentatively got close to Daphne. She snarled a bit when she saw Flim Flam, but calmed down when Shaggy started petting her again.

Flim Flam looked at Shaggy suspiciously. “So how come you aren’t trying to go after me?”  
  
“Because, unlike the others, Shaggy is a true werewolf.” Vincent’s voice came from somewhere inside Flim Flam’s hoodie. He reached into the pocket and pulled out a crystal ball, in which Vincent’s face floated in the middle.

“Like, what do you mean?” Shaggy asked, still trying to keep Daphne calm.

“Unlike a true werewolf, the people of this town are reduced to a mindless state whenever night falls. They can recall their actions, but have no control over them. And they are driven to attack humans.”

“So just me and you,” Flim Flam said, a bit upset.  
  
“Actually just you, I have my ways of protecting myself.”

“We need to get out of here. Mr. Van Ghoul, you’re sure our plane is in the temple?” Shaggy asked

“It is, though it is still out of fuel.”

“Not a problem.” Flim Flam reached for one of his omnipresent bottles. “Jet fuel is one of many uses for Flim Flam’s Lotso Luck Joy Juice.”

“Re’re roing ro re remple?” Scooby asked with his head down.

“We gotta. I don’t know how long we’ve got the villagers distracted, and we need to figure out how to fix Daphne.” Shaggy felt his panic bubble, but forced it down. Right now he was the only one who could keep Daphne from doing something she’d never forgive herself for in her right mind. He had to look out for her, and the rest of them.


	2. Chapter 2

Fred had always been the leader of the Gang. When he wasn’t there, Velma took charge. On this trip without either of them, Daphne had taken to lead. Shaggy had never been in charge of a group larger than just him and Scooby. But Scrappy and Flim Flam were kids and Daphne was completely out of it. Scooby usually deferred to him, so he was it. 

What to do though? His first thought was Fred’s old standby - splitting up. That would keep Daphne away from Flim Flam, and they could meet up at the temple. But almost as soon as he thought of it, he discarded it. Sure it would keep Daphne away from the kid, but there was a whole town of werewolves that would be gunning for him. And Shaggy couldn’t try and lead them away if he didn’t know where the other group was.

So they had to stay together, but somehow be separated unless he wanted to be holding Daphne like an unruly dog the whole time. 

An idea clicked. “Hey Scoob, up for a little scouting?” 

“Routing?” Scooby asked. 

“Like, the towns-wolves only attack humans, they won’t go after you. Check and see if the stage coach is still there and hooked up to the horses. If the drivers gone, we can, like, take that to the temple. You, Scrappy, and Flim Flam, can ride inside, while I drive and Daphne sits next to me. Then when we get to the temple, I’ll take Daphne and shut us inside the cargo bay while you guys gas up the plane.” It was the best plan he had. The only other one was trying to make it the whole way on foot while trying to coral Daphne and he didn’t like the odds of that one.

Scooby saluted him and snuck off in the direction they came from.

Shaggy leaned back with a sigh, one hand still scratching the feral Daphne. He didn’t know if or when she’d make another go of getting him.

Flim Flam himself was hiding behind some boxes, Scrappy keeping a lookout.

“Hey, Shaggy, um. Thanks.” Flim Flam said from his hiding spot.

“No problem, man. Like, I couldn’t just let Daphne go crazy.”

“Yeah but…you guys could just walk out of town no problem. The monsters here won’t attack you. So you’re doing this for me. So thanks.”

Shaggy smiled. “Hey, Mystery Inc doesn’t turn it’s back on people who need help. Daphne could tell you the same thing, if she could speak.” He looked down at his friend who was leaning into being petted. “Daph what _happened to you_?”

He hadn’t been a werewolf for very long, true. But even at his worst, he’d never been through anything like this…this complete loss of self. It was as if she’d been replaced with a wild animal wearing her clothes. At least it looked like the townsfolk went back to normal suing the day, like he did, so Daphne should be back at dawn. Before then he’d just have to cope, for all of them.

“Rhaggy,” Scooby whispered from around the corner. “Re roast ris rear.”

Shaggy nodded. “I’ll get Daphne over there, you guy come behind us. Scrappy look out for him.”

“Gotcha!” Scrappy started shadow boxing the air, as if ready to fight off the whole town.

Shaggy nodded. “Come on Daph.” He felt a little bad, tapping his leg like he was calling a dog, but it seemed to work, she was following him, albeit a bit confused.

Scooby went with them, sticking close to Daphne’s side. Now that he knew she wasn’t going to attack him, his posture was pure concern. He’d been with Shaggy every step of the way dealing with his own change and was just as flummoxed at this.

The coach was at the ready, just like he had hoped. He climbed into the drivers seat and Daphne followed. A few minutes later Flim Flam and Scrappy ducked into the door Scooby was holding open. Daphne growled, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her from attacking. Once he heard the door latch he snapped the reins and with a whinny the carriage took off.

~

“Okay, now those living shouldn’t have any problem getting in.” Weerd looked in approval at their handiwork. There was no way they could miss the big hole in the wall.

“Hey I think someones coming!” Bogel pointed out.

Weerd eagerly looked out and saw the stagecoach approaching. “Eh, just a couple of werewolves.” They both knew the townsfolk wouldn’t open the chest. “The breathers are probably hiding till morning. Nothing to do but wait till then.”  
  
Bogel sighed. “Yeah, you’re right.” They retreated deeper into the temple, not realizing they’d missed their best chance to get the chest open.

~

They reached the temple non too soon. Shaggy could hear howls and growls behind them. Thankfully they had enough of a lead from the carriage it would be a while before the werewolves caught up. 

If the hole in the wall was a little convenient, Shaggy wasn’t complaining. He ducked inside as fast as he could, Daphne and Scooby by his side. He lead her into the cargo hold and Scooby shut them in.

Daphne whined, but he did his best to reassure her. “It’s okay, this is our plane, remember. Our stuff.” He wished, he really wished, there had been some spark of recognition from her. More than ever the dawn couldn’t come fast enough.

He listened as Flim Flam, Scrappy, and Scooby emptied bottle after bottle of the concoction into the fuel tanks. The howling was getting closer with every passing minute.

At long last he heard the cabin door slam and he engines start. Daphne panicking slightly as the plane began to move, but all Shaggy could feel was relief. As soon as he felt the familiar weightlessness of the plane lifting off he let himself relax completely. They’d done it! They’d escaped.

He looked at the other werewolf, curled in his lap. One problem down, one big one to go.  
  
~~~~


	3. Chapter 3

Daphne woke up to an uncomfortable stiffness. The kind you get when you’ve been sleeping in an odd position for too long. She tried to put the horrible nightmare from last night out of her mind, when the room around her seemed to shift as though dropping out from underneath her.

“Gotcha Daph,” Shaggy steadied her with an arm around her waist. “Guess they, like, decided to land.

“Land?” Daphne took in her surroundings. They were in the cargo section of the plane, just like in her nightmare. “Shaggy, please tell me last night I got super drunk on that wolfsbane stuff and last night was just a really terrible hangover dream.”

He didn’t answer verbally, just held her a little closer. Which told her everything she needed to know. “Oh. I guess,” She swallowed a lump in her throat. “I guess Vincent was right about the werewolves.” Daphne struggled to keep her breathing under control.

“Yeah.” Shaggy felt like kicking himself for letting his guard down when Vincent said ‘werewolves’. He’d just assumed they be like him. If only he’d gotten them out of there sooner.

“And...you were a werewolf too. But you were different.” Daphne tried to focus on the strange memories from the previous night. It was like going through the memories of a different person. “You were still you. Why?”

“I don’t know.” Shaggy answered honestly. “It sounded like Vincent did. I guess we should try and find him after we land.” As if on cue the plane landed with a bump. It was a far bigger shake up without seatbelts holding them in place. The luggage was shifting around and they were lucky they didn’t get more than a few bruises.

“i think I prefer riding in the cockpit,” 

“Like, yeah.”

As they rolled to a stop they heard the plane door opening and a few moments later the cargo door opened and Scooby poked his head in. “Raphne! Rou’re Rack!” In one bound Scooby had leaped to them and was smothering Daphne in affection.

“Easy Scooby, I’m fine.” Daphne reassured him.

“You weren’t last night,” Scrappy pointed out.

“Indeed.” Vincent’s rich voice came from outside. “Quite the _hairy_ situation, wasn’t it.”

“Like, you can say that again, Mr. Van Ghoul.” Shaggy stood and stretched his legs. “But what are you doing here, and where are we?”

“The first is answered by he second. This is my home. I instructed the other three to fly here. They’ve been circling the area waiting for sunrise. Now come, we have much to discuss.”

Vincent lead them into a particularly creepy looking castle that had both Shaggy and Scooby trembling.

“What can you tell us about this curse, Vincent?” Daphne asked, sitting down on one of the couches in the sitting room.

“The Chest of Demons is a mystical box containing thirteen of the most malevolent spirits ever to exist. Seeking a safe place to rest it, I hid it the temple near the town you landed in. It should have been safe, but two of the townsfolk wandered in and were bewitched by the spirit’s promises. They opened the Chest and released them. The protections on this place held them for a time, which gave me time to strike back. Normally only the one who opens the Chest can retrap the demons, so to avoid this they killed the two who freed them. I managed to find a loophole, as it was two of the townsfolk who freed them, I had two of the townsfolk reseal them after I subdued them. But the damage had been done. The protections on the temple had been completely destroyed, and worse still the two who had opened the Chest came back as ghosts to lure others into freeing their masters. I needed to find a new place to hide it, but as they were resealed the evil spirits placed the curse on the townsfolk.”

“Each night as the moon rose they were cursed to become werewolves, reduced to a feral state and compelled to attack all humans. As I was the one who brought the Chest of Demons, I swore I would do all I could to break the spell. By their nature every curse has a reverse. It’s just a matter of finding it.”

“Wait, _every_ night?” shock filled Daphne’s voice. “Not just on the full moon?”

“Every night the moon shines in the sky.” Vincent elaborated. “There is a reprieve on nights of the new moon, but otherwise...”

“No...” Daphne whispered. Last night had been bad enough. The thought of doing this once a month was almost unthinkable. But they had to do this _almost every night_???” Wait. “Shaggy didn’t loose control of himself last night. Why was that?” If there was something she could do to keep control, that would go a long ways towards helping.

“That is because unlike you and the people of the town, Shaggy is a true werewolf.” Vincent explained.

“You said that last night, but I still don’t know what you mean. How’s a true werewolf different than any other?” Flim Flam asked.

“A true werewolf is an actual werewolf, while a curse werewolf becomes one.”

“Those still sound the same,” Scrappy admitted.

Vincent sighed. “Shaggy is a werewolf. Right now he’s a human shaped werewolf, sometimes he’s a more wolf shaped werewolf, but he is always a werewolf. Daphne, on the other hand, is right now human. Silver would not burn her like it would Shaggy, nor would she be repelled by wolfsbane.”

“But I thought wolfsbane turned people into werewolves,” Scrappy protested.

“You’ve got it reversed, I’m afraid.” Vincent smiled indulgently. “One of the best ways to keep a werewolf away is with it. That’s why Shaggy reacted so strongly when the drinks were served.”

“But that would mean Shaggy would have been a werewolf before everything went down.” Daphne protested.

Shaggy let out a nervous chuckle. “So, um, you know how I’ve been locking myself in on the full moon cause I said I was hiding from werewolves? It was more like I was hiding a werewolf. Like me.”

Daphne’s head swung around, her jaw gaping a bit.

“Which brings around to where we go from here. You have two options Daphne. The ‘Proper’ way to handle this would be to wait it out until the counter curse is found. I don’t know how much longer it would take, but you’re welcome to stay here. The castle is large and I can easily keep Flim Flam places your transformed self wouldn’t go.”

“Wouldn’t I just go after you?” Daphne asked. “I can’t endanger you in your own house.”

Vincent smiled wryly. “I assure you, I would be in no more danger from you than I was in the village last night.” He fiddled with an amulet around his neck. “Think back if you can. Last night, you instinctively followed Shaggy’s lead, even with Flim Flam right there. Why?”

“Because...it just felt right.” Daphne recalled. “Almost like it would be crazy not to.”

Vincent nodded. “Supernatural creatures can sense each other in a way. True werewolves are inherently more powerful than cursed werewolves. You instinctively saw him as a better werewolf and with the added bonus of being someone you knew and trusted that more than overrode the curse’s prompting to attack.”

“My ancestor...made a foolish pact with a demon for power. And just as arcane power has traveled through his bloodline, so has the infernal taint of it’s origin. Without this talisman suppressing my magical aura, it would feel as though one was in the room with a demon. Nothing enough to even give any of the thirteen pause, but werewolves? Removing my talisman for only a second one night was enough to insure none of the townsfolk, transformed or not, bothered me ever again. So I am in no danger from either of you.” He reassured.

“Okay, you said that would be the proper thing, that means there’s another option?” Daphne prompted.

“Yes, as I said, until the sun sets you’re a normal human. And like a normal human, you could be turned into a true werewolf, thus making you immune from the curse. You would only forcibly change once a month, and even then keep your mind.”

“Then let’s do that then.” Sure it wasn’t _great,_ but comparatively...

“No,” said Shaggy, quickly.

Vincent nodded. “I suspected you already knew the problem with this method,”

“Which would be?” Daphne prompted.

“No going back.” Shaggy said tightly. “Like Mr. Van Ghoul said, give it time and you can cure the curse. Actually being a werewolf has no cure. I tried Daph. I know your curse is worse than mine, but, like, you have a chance I’m never gonna get. Mr. Van Ghoul and I can make sue you don’t hurt anyone so please, don’t throw this away. Please, trust us. Trust me.”

Daphne’s first instinct was to do just that, but...she did trust Shaggy. And Vincent to a lesser degree. “I’ll give it some time, but on two conditions. I’m securely locked up somewhere, and if there’s anything remotely remembering a close call, we end it there. You stop me even if you have to hurt me, and as soon as I turn back to human, you turn me into a real werewolf.”

Shaggy clearly didn’t like it anymore than she did, but he agreed,

“It might be easier to lock you out than lock you up.” Vincent supplied. “The castle is a literal fortification and there’e nothing resembling neighbors for a few hundred miles. Things might be easier for you to not even be close to temptation.”

“If you says so.” Daphne said glumly.

~

The sunset was beautiful, but Daphne couldn’t find it in herself to appreciate it. Shaggy had already transformed, for her peace of mind. It helped a little, seeing him as a wolf, but still him. Scooby was also joining them. 

“I never apologized,” Shaggy admitted. “I, um, kind of was treating you as a dog last night and that wasn’t right, but I couldn’t think of what else to do.”

“Shaggy, you could have put a leash on me and I would have thanked you. The wolf me isn’t human and you can’t act like she is. She’s not me. Whatever you have to do to control her, do it.” That hadn’t been the apology she was hoping for. She wanted to know why he hadn’t told her, told any of them, about being a werewolf.

But she couldn’t. The final rays of the sun slipped below the horizon, and her humanity fell with it. She felt the curse take hold and struggled to keep control, But it was like trying not to fall asleep while being exhausted. No matter how much she clung to wakefulness she couldn’t keep her grip.

Daphne fell and the wolf arose.


	4. Chapter 4

"I know what you're about to ask me, and no, I've made no progress." 

"Like, we're running out of time." Shaggy said, running his hand through his hair. "The new moon's the night after next." Vincent was right in that without being around a human to lash out at, Daphne's evenings were much better than the first. Wolf Daphne was perfectly content to run around the the area outside Vincent's home chasing lightning bugs, or begging Shaggy for things like ear or chin scritches. 

But better didn't necessarily mean good. The complete loss of control weighed on Daphne, highlighted even more by the fact that she could remember what happened when her body was outside her control. In the couple hours of sleep she would grab after sunrise, she was plagued by nightmares of what could go wrong. As such, she'd given Vincent a timeframe for the cure. They had through the New Moon, when no transformation would occur, and the day after. But before sunset on that day, if no progress had been made, Shaggy would bite her, thus turning her into a 'true' werewolf.

And Shaggy didn't want that. He _really_ didn't want that. But Daphne was suffering and he didn't want that either! He respected that this was her decision, and he would honor it, but that didn't stop him from hoping against hope they'd find something beforehand. 

But so far everything had been a dud. Vincent had tried various remedies, even a de-aging potion to see if Flim Flam's young age was the reason the curse hadn't affected him. It hadn't worked, but Daphne had made an adorable werewolf cub. 

"I am aware of the date Shaggy, but this is largely a process of trial and error. We don't even know which of the thirteen cursed them, each of which could require a different methodology." Vincent sighed. He understood Shaggy's concern, as well as his desire to help his friend, but there was only so much he could do.

"I still think it has something to do with that drink." Scrappy said, crossing his arms. 

"I fail to see how, but it's worth a shot, I suppose." Vincent let out a tired sigh. "I don't have any other ideas at the moment. Of course it will take some time to break down the brew into all possible magical components." 

"There's a much quicker way, Vince." Flim Flam offered. "I can just drink some." The assembled group looked at him. "What, I'm the only 'normal' human here who could be affected. If it does nothing, we've ruled it out. If I turn into a werewolf too, Daphne can actually stay inside for the night, since there's no one here for her to attack. I'm actually safer that way." He shrugged. 

Vincent fixed him with a look. "Flim Flam, you understand while identifying the drink as the culprit would narrow things down immensely, it could still be quite a while before I figure out the counter." 

"I know, but it speeds things up, and I'd actually be in less danger. Besides," Flim Flam shuffled his feet. "You guys have been pretty good to me, and I want to help." "You know you don't have to do this," Daphne said entering the room. Her clothes and hair were flawless as always, but her makeup couldn't quite hide the bags under her eyes. 

Shaggy bowed his head. "I wish I could-" 

"Shaggy, you're the only reason this situation isn't 100% worse, so don't feel guilty you can't be the guinea pig." Daphne chided. "And I'm serious, Flim Flam, you don't have to do this."

"Well, I choose to." Flim Flam said stubbornly. "It's worth a shot." 

"A very against the odds shot, which is the only reason I'm agreeing to this." Vincent summoned a tankard from...somewhere...that had SHaggy reeling back with a look of disgust. "However, first I want you to swallow this." He handed Flim Flam a small object. 

"It looks like a fossilized hairball." Flim Flam said critically. 

"It's called a bezoar. It will nullify any poison you ingest." Vincent explained.

"Won't that mess with the curse?" Scrappy asked. 

"Not at all. A curse is not poison. Wolfsbane, however, is an extremely deadly one, used as a common form of execution in ancient Greece. The wolfsbane in this has been detoxified as much at it can be, but it's barely safe for an adult. It is absolutely not safe for a child without precautions like this." 

"If it's so deadly, why put it in a drink? Much less the town specialty?" Daphne wondered. 

"Hope makes you do stupid things." Shaggy answered, a touch bitterly.

"Rope?" Scooby asked. 

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you figured it out." Vincent sighed. "The drink was originally an attempt to self medicate. They hoped that such a powerful werewolf repellent such as wolfsbane would ward off the curse. It didn't, but without anything else they could do, they kept at it. That's why they drink it right before sunset." 

"So they almost poison themselves every night just trying to weaken the curse? I feel kind of bad for them." Daphne said. 

"I don't." 

" _Shaggy!_ " 

"What? I don't." Shaggy crossed his arms. "Like, they were actively trying to keep us from leaving Daph. Which means either they were planning on killing us in their werewolf forms, or trying to get us cursed too. And either way, I'm not feeling sorry for them. We, like, didn't have a choice in this. They made that choice, and they did it during the day. They knew what they were doing." 

"I...I never thought of it that way. I just thought of them as victims of the curse like me...which is exactly what they wanted us to think." Daphne slammed her fist into the castle's stone wall. "If Scrappy and Flim Flam were right, and it was the drink they served us that carried the curse, then they purposefully tried to curse us so we'd feel sorry or at least kinship with them. And since children can't safely tolerate the drink, they were writing Flim Flam off as dead either way."

Daphne growled. It wasn't a wolfish one, but it made her rage perfectly clear. "Oooo I wish I could turn into a monster right now and rip them to shreds." 

"I can do that." Shaggy said, though he looked deeply uncomfortably. "I mean they hurt you and..." 

Daphne took a deep breath, trying to release her anger. "You could never live with yourself if you did that and I could never live with myself for asking you. I'm just...just a whole lot of bad feelings right now. Thank god tonight's the last time." 

"Yeah," Shaggy said less than enthusiastically. 

"And possibly first time. Bottoms up." Flim Flam swallowed the bezoar, then took a large sip of the drink. "Hey not bad." 

"That's because you're not a werewolf." Shaggy said, wrinkling his nose. He really couldn't understand how people could tolerate that smell, much less like it. 

"I suggest we all get some rest this afternoon. Between a potential second werewolf and Daphne's cursed self being let loose around my house, I suspect tonight we will all need it." After so many all nighters studying the curse, Vincent knew he certainly did. 

"Inside? But what if the drink doesn't turn Flim Flam?' Daphne fretted. 

"Between Shaggy, Scooby, Scrappy, and myself we are more than sufficient to make sure no harm comes to him." Vincent reassured her. "I am far more concerned for my upholstery's safety than his." 

~

"Last time." Daphne said as she watched the sky turn pink from her window. "Shaggy, really, thank you for everything. Not just keeping me company and corralling me during the night. but being willing to...I know you don't want to." 

"I _really_ don't." Shaggy admitted. "But your curse is so much worse than mine. I don't want you to go through this anymore either." 

Daphne sighed. "Are you ever going to tell me what happened?" 

"Maybe." Shaggy answered. "Are you going to tell Velma and Fred about this?" 

"I don't know. Not yet. I don't like keeping secrets from them, and I'm not opposed to them knowing. But right now I just don't want to talk about it. It feels too raw." 

"Maybe one day," Shaggy said for both of them. 

"One day," Daphne agreed as the last rays of the sun, and thus her human mind, vanished in the light of the thinnest sliver of moon.

It was easy to tell when Daphne stopped being herself. Her whole demeanor changed, relaxing. She nudged his shoulder with her muzzle, tail wagging.

“Like, at least someone’s having a good time.” he commented, rubbing her neck. He didn’t know if the change was tiring. The first night he wouldn’t have thought so, as she’d tried to attack Flim Flam almost immediately. But every night since had started with the wolf being very docile and wanting affection. Later she would want to explore or run around, but the start of the night was always quiet.

At least it was until a walkie talkie crackled to life. " _I told you guys!_ " Scrappy's voice came from the other side. " _I told you wolfsbane turns people into werewolves!_ "

Shaggy grabbed for his radio. "Really? Then Flim Flam is...?" 

A small yip came from over the device, which made wolf Daphne's ears perk. She looked at Shaggy expectantly. 

"You want to see another werewolf huh?" Her tail wagged harder. "Well, I guess we can go." Shaggy's feelings were decidedly mixed. They were one step closer to an answer, but it meant Flim Flam was cursed too. The only small mercy was he would never have to deal with the memory of needing to attack humans, since as he pointed out himself, he had been the only normal person there. 

~

They had reached the living room when the two youngest members of their group joined them. Like Daphne, Flim Flam seemed to have no remnant of his human personality. He and Daphne Wolf stared at each other for a moment, before both jumped on the couch,making happy noises. Daphne Wolf began licking the top of his head, like one packmate grooming another. 

"Dawww" Scooby cooed at the sight.

"Like, Daphne's not going to be happy if she gets hairballs." Shaggy comment, feeling a bit torn. The two were so happy, it was obvious the curse werewolves craved each others company, and he'd been keeping Daphne away from the others. But at the same time he didn't trust them, even without their minds. These were the people who had hurt Daphne, and he wouldn't give them a chance to get their claws into her.

"I truly did not think this would work." Vincent said, entering the room. "I must wonder if one of the ingredients was the original vector, or merely an additional one. Either way it should-" He was cut off by twin growls as Daphne and Flim Flam both rose from the couch, fur standing on end and teeth bared. 

"Guys NO!" Shaggy moved between them and their intended target, but Vincent had his own ideas, lifting the amulet around his neck ever so slightly. Shaggy was no stranger to fear, it was the emotion he was most familiar with, after all. But he'd never felt anything like this. This cold clutching at his heart, his muscles tensing so much it hurt. Fear so intense he felt he'd almost come around the other side to nothing. 

Then it broke, and the sudden absence of the fear was enough to push all three werewolves into bolting. "A bit too much?" Vincent asked the gobsmacked Scooby and Scrappy.

"Rust a reeny rit." Scooby replied, holding his paws barely apart.

~

"Raggy! Raggy!" 

Scooby's voice broke through the panic that was driving him, and Shaggy shook himself out of it. Vincent had told him, _told him_ , about the whole aura thing, but he hadn't been able to think when he was faced with it. "That was terrifying, man. Like, Mr. Van Ghoul was not kidding about being terrifying to werewolves." Were _wolves_ , oh no. "Did you see where Daphne and Flim Flam went?" 

"Ruh-Ra," Scooby shook his head. "Rappy rent rafter Rim Ram." 

"I guess that leaves us to find-" There was a sudden sound of shattering glass. "Daphne just went outside, didn't she?"

"Rep." Scooby confirmed. 

Shaggy sighed, "Like I just hope she went through a bottom floor window." 

She had. And left a clear trail of upturned soil and broken twigs and branches in her path is her rush to escape. With such an easy trail to follow, it didn't take overly long to find her, curled in a ball at the base of a great rock, shacking. 

Shaggy and Scooby both curled around her her, making reassuring sounds until the shaking stopped. "You good to go back Daph?" Shaggy asked in a gentle tone. 

Daphne's ears went back, looking scared at even the idea of returning to the castle. "Hey, don't worry. You know Vincent would never hurt us. And besides, Flim Flam and Scrappy's still back there." 

Daphne let out a small, whine, clearly not happy, but still got up. 

"Like, I know this won't make you feel better now, but believe me. Human you is going to find me coaxing you into a spooky place hilarious tomorrow." Shaggy assured her as they made their way back. 

"You found her!" Scrappy waved at them from the broken window. "Did you find Flim Flam?" 

"Not yet, I figured I should guard the window so he couldn't run out." Scrappy explained. 

"Good thinking." Shaggy agreed. "I guess we check his room first?" Sure enough, the door was slightly ajar. With a sigh of relief Shaggy opened it, only to freeze at what he saw inside. “Zoinks!” Quickly he tried to shut the door, but he wasn't fast enough as Daphne slipped in the room.

~

Flim Flam fled as fast as his legs could carry him. When he’d first seen the figure something deep inside him had taken over, driven him to attack. But that was swiftly overridden with the sense of danger and evil that suddenly radiated from it.

All he could do was was flee and in his rush he’d lost track of the others. So he headed towards the only place that was familiar, the room he’d woken up in. He hadn’t slowed down in time though, and as he burst through the door he collided with a dressers, causing something inside to wobble and then fall off, shattering on the ground.

Flim Flam dove under the bed and huddled there, ears poked for any sounds, from his friends to the scary man. But there was nothing. There was, however, a smell. It smelled tasty and was coming from whatever had spilled on the floor.

As scared as he was, he was also curious. Slowly he inched his way out from under the bed, ready to duck back under at moment’s notice. He tentatively took a lick and shuddered as a strange sensation flooded through him. His thoughts became sharper, clearer, more...

More human! He was thinking like a human! Flim Flam did a double take between his very human hands and clearly still nighttime sky. He glanced down at the broken bottle on the floor and couldn’t help the wide grin that spread across his face.

For years he’d been written off as a pint-sized conman, but here was proof his Lotsa Luck Joy Juice was the real deal. It had broken a werewolf curse set by one of the thirteen evilest spirit’s in existence!

“Zoinks!”

Shaggy’s sudden cry caught Flim Flam by surprise and his head shot up just in time to see the werewolf version of Daphne barrel past Shaggy and into the room.

Flim Flam felt his heart jump into his throat. He’d been kept far away from Daphne in her transformed state. She’d apologized profusely and he hadn’t held it against her. But the memory of her trying to attack him as still there and now those teeth were an inch from his face.

Shaggy was there in an instant, hand on Daphne’s shoulder to hold her back. But Daphne wasn't trying to pull forward to attack, like she had two weeks ago. Nor was she happy like earlier this evening. Instead she just cocked her head to the side before looking at Shaggy. 

Shaggy shrugged at her. "Like, I think she's confused 'cause you were a werewolf earlier and now you're not. Actually, I am too." 

"I found the cure. Flim Flam's Lotsa Luck Joy Juice!" Flim Flam said proudly. "Wolf me drank some that spilled from the broken bottle." 

"That's great!" Shaggy exclaimed. "Is there more? Like without the chance of broken glass." 

"Well no," Flim Flam admitted. "I kept that for posterity, the rest went into the Flying Mystery Machine's gas tank." An odd name for a plane, but who was he to argue. "But I can make more!"

“Sounds great,” Shaggy sat, more collapsed, on the bed. It was as if the knowledge that there was an end in sight released even more tension than he’d known he had. His limbs felt noodlely but honestly he felt better than he had in two weeks. “How long does it take?” 

“A few days at most. Might take less if Vince has everything I need to make it.” Flim Flam said offhand.

Shaggy felt his heart sink. They only had a little more than a day. Daphne had made it clear this was her last night transformed by the curse. “What can I do to help?”

Flim Flam thought for a moment. “Nothing. Sorry Shaggy, Part of the process involves silver, and you shouldn’t be near that.” Shaggy wanted to argue that scars from silver burns would be worth it to save Daphne, but Scooby was giving him a _look_ that said he knew what Shaggy was thinking, and he should stop thinking it right now.

“Re ran relp,” Scooby indicated himself and Scrappy.

“Yeah, okay.” Flim Flam nodded. “That shouldn’t be a problem.”

“And Vincent too!” Scrappy added. 

Daphne let out a slight yelp, then a whine, looking at Shaggy pleadingly.

“It’s okay, Vincent won’t hurt them,” Shaggy tried to reassure her. "I know he felt really scary, but we've been living with him for weeks, remember." 

Flim Flam shuddered. "I know he told us about that, but experiencing it was a whole 'nother thing."

"Like tell me about it," Shaggy suppressed a shudder himself . "I should probably keep Daph away from him till morning. She was really spooked." 

"Don't blame her." Flim Flam knew it would be a while before he forgot that feeling. "See you on the flip side." He carefully walked past where he and Daphne were before taking off. 

"Re rot rhis," Scooby promised. "Rit's ronna re rokay." 

"It's gonna be okay," Shaggy repeated, still not sure he completely believed it, even though he wanted to. Hope was a dangerous luxury.


End file.
